Favorite food

Forte in sports

Special skill

Hearing the voice of Nature; Making Lateshikepu and hearing everyone say that it's delicious (SS)

Most unpleasant

"...I can't reveal that."

Favorite music

Folk tales sung by her grandmother

Measurements (bust, waist, hip)

73cm, 50cm, 82cm

Weapon

Her treasured sword, Chichi-ushi (Father Bull)

Fighting style

Dancing Sword Arts of the Shikanna-Kamui

Nakoruru (ナコルル,Nakoruru?) is a character in the Samurai Shodown series of fighting games. She is also a common mascot for SNK's social action programs for children and nature awareness campaigns, sometimes being paired with Terry Bogard for such events. Her official nickname is Mother Nature's Guardian.[1]

Aside from the main series, Nakoruru also has several figurines made in her image from various game appearances and is a featured character in several of the series's drama CDs. She stars in her own character image CD and is also a member in SNK's character image band, Band of Fighters.

Contents

Although she has no particular model for her character, Hilda from The Great Adventure of Horus, Prince of the Sun and The Dagger of Kamui helped her conception process. Also developers admit that her famous "This is nature's punishment" quote is based on Sailor Moon's "In the name of moon, I punish you" line. Her character is based upon the Ainu people of Hokkaido, Japan. As the Japanese perceive the Ainu as living closer to nature, Nakoruru's role in the game is of a defender of Mother Nature; in some material Nakoruru has been referred to as a priestess.

In the Neo Geo Freak's 1997 Volume 8 character poll, she was voted as the second favourite character with a total of 1,732 votes. [2] And in Neo Geo Freak's August 1998 issue, she was ranked as the 5th best character. [3] In the character popularity poll on Neo Geo Freak's website, she was voted as the seventh favorite character with a total of 1,252 votes.

Garou: Mark of the Wolves planner and The King of Fighters XIV producer Yasuyuki Oda states that Nakoruru's popularity surprised even the company as no one at SNK had "expected that Nakoruru would become a popular character to that extent."[4] Oda recalls being surprised that one of the series’ characters, became a fan-favorite despite her modest, non-sexualized appearance. “A lot of characters at that time were popular because of their sexiness,” he says. “But Nakoruru doesn’t show a lot of skin.”[5] Old developers in the Neo Geo era had no plans to add Nakoruru in The King of Fighters as they felt that she didn't fit into the game very well, but admit that they probably wanted to add her in regardless but was unable to due to the systems limitations. [4] A "Samurai Spirits Team" was originally scheduled to participate in The King of Fighters '95 and The King of Fighters '96. This idea was eventually dropped due to time constraints as KOF was released every year. Nakoruru was originally intended to team up with Haohmaru and Galford. [6] Nakoruru was later included to KOF XIV due to her immense popularity. [7]

During Samurai Shodown (2019) development, someone on the team pointed out that Nakoruru’s disposition had gradually changed over the years in other ways, going from sad and stoic to a bit cheery. So the team decided to depict her closer to the character’s original ’93 incarnation. “So for this one, I don’t think you’ll ever see her smile.”[5]

At 15, she and Rimururu are playing in the forest when Mamahaha flies in holding her father's sword. Sensing her father was in danger, she apologized to Rimururu and leaves. Upon reaching Hinowa, Nakoruru tells Gaoh that his war is hurting the planet. Gaoh proclaims he will build a new country and will destroy any who would stand in his way. At his defeat, Kamui appears before her, asking Nakoruru to follow her father's footsteps as he was killed. Nakoruru asks what would happen if she declined and is told another maiden would be asked to be the successor. Not wanting Rimururu to be put at risk, Nakoruru accepts to become the new Kamui warrior of Kamui Kotan.

Nakoruru's sacrifice in Samurai Shodown II

She continues to fulfill this role throughout the series protecting nature and defeating villains often alongside Haohmaru. However, after overthrowing Mizuki Rashojin, she sacrifices herself to restore nature's balance and becomes one with the spirit of Nature. In Samurai Shodown 64, her apparent death is retconned. Instead of sacrificing herself, she slept within Kamui Kotan's forests and was protected by the spirits of nature. At nature's beckoning, she awakens to fight the disturbing presence caused by Yuga the Destroyer. Sometime after Yuga's second defeat, she eventually returns to her slumber.

Nakoruru and Haohmaru in Warriors Rage.

Later in Warriors Rage, she transcends even further and melds her soul with Gaia to become a Divine Spirit in nature's service. As one of the "Maidens of Light", she travels across space and time to prevent the disasters of the world from occurring. However, she is stopped in her quest by a magical spell cast by Jigen Taishi in Ritenkyo. This leaves Nakoruru unable to assume her original form, and she can only battle evil through the strength of her fellow forest sprits. Weakened, she knows she must stop Oboro's evil plan, but cannot without the Maiden of Light Rimururu, who has been sealed by Oboro. Nakoruru informs Haohmaru of the threat and sets out on a quest to free her sister and together combine their powers to defeat evil. [8]

In Sen, she follows the runaway Rimururu, hoping to protect her younger sister from the danger that she sensed. She also left her home to tell Rimururu the reason why she is in her current predicament.

In this game, Nakoruru is living peacefully at her home as the village's priestess. At the behest of the village's elder, she adopts a protege named Mikato and teaches the young girl about Kamui and her society's culture. However, Nakoruru remains distant due to her other half, Rera, who constantly warns her about an incoming evil. Wanting to continue her life of serenity, Nakoruru doesn't talk about this to anyone. She is also afraid of losing her own identity if she accepts Rera completely.

When Mikato discovers the truth about her reluctant nature, the priestess has already lost her powers due to her selfish nature. Despite this, she takes action once her home is attacked by demons and sets out alone to somehow deal with the threat peacefully. Eventually, Nakoruru accepts Rera and fights Mizuki. Unfortunately, while protecting Mikato from being hurt, she is badly injured. She succeeds in dealing a mighty blow against Mizuki but succumbs to her wounds and dies. Mikato, who was destined to carry out the priestess' prophecy, uses Nakoruru's sword to avenge her. It's implied that Nakoruru is happily reunited with Yantamu in the afterlife.

Sometime after her ascension as a spirit of Nature, Nakoruru sensed terrible malice coming from a crack in spacetime. To prevent the disaster of its potential release and to find its source, Nakoruru traveled to the present day; The King of Fighters universe and enters the tournament in The King of Fighters XIV with Mui Mui and Love Heart.

After Verse's defeat, Nakoruru senses that it may one day return. She decides that she and her comrades should stay in this universe, declaring her wishes to visit modern day Hokkaido and China.

Nakoruru is calm and gentle. She seems to be shy toward people. Yet, to others, her mannerisms and appearance make her seem rather "doll-like", a term that somewhat displeases her. She is also maternal, chiding her sister as she would a child. She believes that Nature can be protected without killing others and often vies for non-violent solutions if she thinks it's possible and, thus, has a will to protect the weak, fearful, and innocent. She also knows that true power must not be misused. Although she is dedicated in her mission, she also desires to be a normal girl with selfish desires, which sometimes sets her apart from her friends and peers.

Nakoruru fights with a kodachi, and, depending on the form, a hawk named Mamahaha (in "Shura/Slash") or a wolf named Shikuru (in "Rasetsu/Bust" form and later Rera). To compensate for her short weapon range, players must rely on her speed to punish her opponents' mistakes. She can also recover from her moves a little quicker than other characters, making it easier for her to hit-and-run during fights. To balance her out with the rest of the cast, her attack strength is slightly weaker than most fighters. Her move set usually incorporates slightly longer ranged attacks that project her or her animal companions to her foes so her attack range isn't limited to her sword. She can also reflect projectiles with the move, Kamui Ryusei.

From Samurai Shodown V Special and beyond, fatality-styled attacks can be done on Nakoruru, a feature that was previously not possible in earlier titles. When done to her, she has a different and audibly terrified death scream.